Do not let your blood be sucked...
It rarely leads to eternal life. As Halloween approaches, fear is in the air. Even as accomplished business professionals, we all still have anxieties that make us queasy and get in the way of progress. But those nasty demons need to be dealt with. This month, let's get out our garlic cloves and stakes (the metaphorical ones) and fight-off those blood-sucking business vampires.
I just came back from an event called Women at Woodstock. One of the workshops required us to share some of our deepest darkest secrets and shames with the group.
I realized as I fought off my nausea, that although I have often prided myself on being fearless in business that I still had some "stuff" to work on. In fact, on the last day I led a social media workshop (which I have done many times before), but I found myself up at 5am, jittery about it. "What the hell am I afraid of?" I asked myself (not out loud, of course). By analyzing my fear, I was able to deal with it.
- Fear of public speaking is a common one. Robyn Hatcher was one of the speakers at the conference. She taught me some amazing presentation tricks during her workshop. Ironically, one of the reasons I was nervous before my talk is that I knew Robyn would be in the audience and I was afraid of messing up. (Robyn...I'm sure you're chuckling as you read this.)
- Fear of social media among my generation is pervasive. Loss of privacy, technology anxiety/ignorance, and concern that it will take up too much time seem to be the biggest worries. When I teach my workshops now, I now advocate small steps into the abyss, and I see the relief on people's faces when they realize they don't have to do it all at once.
- Fear of change...rapid, unpredictable change...seems to haunt all of us at some point in our businesses (and lives). And, as we all know, the economy, technology, and even the weather have all messed with our heads over the past few years. But change is inevitable. If we pull the covers over our heads or dig in to what used to be, we will only wind up falling further behind.
- Fear of saying no. Taking on business or projects that distract us from other things, allowing toxic people into our lives, and delaying difficult conversations can all hurt profitability in the long run.
- Fear of failure often results in total paralysis or procrastination. That's where trusted advisors can help. The women I met last week gave me the confidence and tools to fight my own terror demons. And Ann Baker, who organized the conference is one of the bravest women I met, taking a chance on this great new concept!
Watch out monsters...we're fighting back this month!
How to kill a "walker" (zombie). Gotta love "The Walking Dead" (warning: graphic and gross)
And, on a serious note, how to overcome business fears